Arthur Shearly Cripps
Arthur Shearly Cripps (10 June 1869 - 1 August 1952) was an English poet and short story writer, who worked as an Anglican priest and who spent most of his life in Southern Rhodesia (now Zimbabwe). Life Cripps was born in Tunbridge Wells, Kent, and was educated at Charterhouse School and Trinity College, Oxford, where he read history. He then trained at Cuddeston Theological College, taking holy orders, and from 1894 had the parish Ford End in Essex. He became a missionary for the Society for the Propagation of the Gospel, intending to work in Mashonaland, after reading criticism of the methods of Cecil Rhodes. From 1902 he had a parish near Enkeldoorn (now known as Chivhu) in what was then Southern Rhodesia. Arthur Cripps lived for some time in Manyene Communal Lands, about 120 km South of Harare, 20 km North of Chivhu. An area of Manyene is now know by a name he influenced, Maronda Mashanu, which means The Five Wounds in the local Shona language. There are claims that Father Cripps is buried near All Saints School in the same area of Manyene Communal Lands. Manyene is part of Chikomba District in the Mashonaland East province of Zimbabwe. He was in conflict with the British South Africa Company over land distribution, taking the side of the African population. He was given the Shona name Mpandi, or 'the man who walks like thunder'. After more than 20 years he returned to England for a time after a quarrel with the British administration; but went back shortly for the rest of his life, having in 1927 published Africa for Africans, on the land issue. He is chiefly known for his short stories, which continue to be taught and read in South Africa. The bulk of these stories are from his book "Cinderella in the South." His great-great-nephew is the Welsh poet, Owen Sheers, who has written about him in the award-winning, Dust Diaries (2004). Recognition There is a road in Harare, Cripps Road, named after Arthur Cripps. Four of his poems (""Missa Viatoris," "An Easter Hymn," "The Black Christ," and an extract from "The Death of St. Francis") were printed in the Oxford Book of English Mystical Verse, ''1917.Alphabetical List of Authors, ''Oxford Book of English Mystical Verse, Oxford University Press, 1917. Bartleby.com, Web, June 21, 2014. In popular culture Some people from Manyene Communal Lands claim that Cripps performed miracles. For example there is a story that a white man who wanted to assault him for associating with Africans was crippled the moment he raised his hand; the man was only healed when Father Cripps prayed for him. Publications *Primavera: Poems by four authors'' (Laurence Binyon, Arthur Shearly Cripps, Manmohan Ghose, Stephen Phillips). Oxford, UK: B.H. Blackwell, 1890. *''Titania, and other poems''. London: Elkin Mathews, 1900. *''Jonathan: A Song of David''. Oxford, B.H. Blackwell / London, Simpkin, Marshall, Hamilton, Kent, 1902. *''The Black Christ''. Oxford, B.H. Blackwell / London, Simpkin, Marshall, Hamilton, Kent, 1902. *''Magic Casements''. London: Duckworth, 1905. *''Lyra Evangelistica: Missionary verses of Mashonaland''. Oxford, UK: B.H. Blackwell, 1909. *''Pilgrimage of Grace: Verses on a mission''. Oxford, UK: B.H. Blackwell / London, Simpkin, Marshall, 1912. *''Pilgrim's Joy: Verses''. Oxford, UK: B.H. Blackwell, 1916. *''Lake and War: African land and water verses''. Oxford, UK: B.H. Blackwell, 1917. *''Africa: Verses''. London & New York: Oxford University Press, 1939. Novels *''The Brooding Earth: A story of Mashonaland''. Oxford, UK: B.H. Blackwell / London, Simpkin, Marshall, 1911. *''Bay-Tree Country: A story of Mashonaland''. Oxford, UK: B.H. Blackwell / London, Simpkin, Marshall, 1913. *''A Martyr's Servant: A tale of John Kent, AD 1553-1563''. London: Duckworth, 1915. *''Africans All''. London: Sheldon Press, 1928. Short fiction *''Faerylands Forlorn: African tales''. Oxford, UK: B.H. Blackwell / London, Simpkin, Marshall, 1910. *''The Two of Them Together: A tale about Africa to-Day'' (1910) *[http://www.gutenberg.org/etext/22886 Cinderella in the South: South African tales]. Oxford, UK: B.H. Blackwell, 1918. Non-fiction *''The Sabi Reserve: A Southern Rhodesian native problem''. Oxford, UK: B.H. Blackwell, 1920. *''Chaminuka: The man whom God taught''. London: Sheldon Press, 1928. *''An Africa for Africans: A plea on behalf of territorial segregation areas and their freedom in a southern African colony''. London & New York: Longmans Green, 1927; New York: Negro Universities, 1969. Collected editions *''Arthur Shearly Cripps: A selection of his prose and verse'' (edited by G R Brown; A J Chennells, & L.B. Rix). Gwelo, Rhodesia: Mambo Press, 1976. Except where noted, bibliographical information courtesy WorldCat.Search results = au:Arthur Shirley Cripps, WorldCat, OCLC Online Computer Library Center Inc. Web, June 21, 2014. See also * List of British poets References *''God's irregular: Arthur Shearly Cripps'' (1973), Douglas V. Steere, London SPCK. *''Arthur Shearly Cripps'' (1975), John Robert Doyle, Boston, Twayne. Notes External links ;Poems * Arthur Shearly Cripps in the Oxford Book of English Mystical Verse: "Missa Viatoris," "An Easter Hymn," "The Black Christ," from "The Death of St. Francis". *Arthur Shearly Cripps at AllPoetry (9 poems) ;Books * ;About *The Dictionary of African Christian Biography on Arthur Cripps *"The St. Francis of Assissi of the African Countryside," Diocese of Masvingo *Arthur Shearley Cripps: An assessment (.PDF) Category:1869 births Category:1952 deaths Category:Alumni of Trinity College, Oxford Category:English poets Category:English Anglican priests Category:People educated at Charterhouse School Category:Anglican poets Category:People from Royal Tunbridge Wells Category:Christian missionaries in Zimbabwe Cripps, Arthur Stanley Category:20th-century poets Category:English-language poets Category:Poets Category:Christian poets